Diode (New Earth)
| PlaceOfBirth = | Creators = John Rozum; Vince Giarrano | First = Action Comics #756 | Quotation = Good Lord, look at that! Is that what it means to be a supercriminal these days? In my time, it was merely for illicit monetary gain, and to outwit a foe with flair. No one ever got seriously hurt...let alone murdered. | Speaker = Diode | QuoteSource = Action Comics Vol 1 756 | HistoryText = Diode the Invincible was a D-list villain who was defeated by Superman early in his criminal career. The elderly Diode, still craving the recognition he never received, decided to resurrect his old persona. The man who became Diode was an adept engineer who misused his talents to construct a robotic suit and power fork for criminal gain. His actions garnered the attention of Superman. Diode's power fork produced incredible energy blasts that even the Man of Steel struggled against, eventually collapsing. Diode reveled in his victory and became distracted by a female admirer, before his trident was snatched from his hand and destroyed by Superman who had been playing possum. A short time later, Diode's criminal career was completely brought to a close after losing to the obscure hero, Checkered Flag, Superhero of the Speedway. Years later, the elderly Diode fell into obscurity, living in a retirement home with other forgotten supervillains. Frustrated with the disrespect from the public and his peers, Diode built a newer model of the suit and set out to prove himself as a supervillain to be remembered, randomly choosing Bloomfield as his target. Making his dramatic entrance into the First National Bank of Bloomfield, Diode proudly watched the civilians flee before him. Little did Diode know a news report had announced that a ruthless criminal gang, the Doomslayers, were last seen approaching Bloomfield and he was mistaken for one of them. Diode eagerly emptied the cash drawers until his old foe Superman arrived. Diode had been expecting the local hero Emerald Don to show up, but he was elsewhere, being murdered by the Doomslayers. Panicking, Diode unleashed all his weaponry simultaneously, razing the bank around him. The ensuing fight with his Kryptonian opponent was fierce, until Diode took flight and saw the destruction he had cause from above, as well as the nearby Doomslayers. He was ashamed of himself. It wasn't like the "good old days" he remembered when criminals used wit and flare for monetary reward, not leveling entire blocks and killing people. Diode surrendered himself telling Superman to deal with the serious villains. The Doomslayers were a serious threat to even Superman, and he was almost thrown into the path of Cybersaw's attack when Diode intervened, fusing Cybersaw's metallic arms with a thermal blast, rendering him harmless. He casually took out Bad Grrl with one punch before assisting Superman with a display of might to cause Deadfall to give himself up. The leader, Doc Omega threatened the lives of two reporters, claiming Superman could only save them by intercepting the kryptonite bullets, sacrificing himself in the process. Diode, however, shielded the news crew from the incoming fire himself, voicing his incredulity that it was real Kryptonite. Superman agreed and apprehended Omega. Diode was interviewed as a hero by the reporters he saved, humbly announcing his retirement. He proudly sat around the domino table vindicated as his fellow disbelievers witnessed his feats on the television that evening. | Powers = | Abilities = * : Diode had a degree in mechanical engineering, building his power suit and trident himself. | Strength = | Weaknesses = | Equipment = * Diode Power Suit: Constructed out of a material similar to that used on space shuttle tiles. ** ** : Energy blasts that can hold back Superman and level buildings. ** : Diode's suit deflected Superman's heat vision and withstood a building collapsing on him. ** : Diode's suit was capable of shooting missiles. * Power Fork: Originally separate, Diode's second suit had the trident build into the right arm. | Transportation = | Weapons = | Notes = | Trivia = | Recommended = | Links = }}